Chaos, Book One: Genesis
by Akiko Keeper of Sheep
Summary: A new evil is stalking through Time and Space, and as usual, new Rangers are needed to stop it. Who they are, however, may surprise you. Contains Het and Slash!
1. Rising

A/N - Well, here I am again. Starting a new fic. Hooray. This one has actually been fourteen years in the making. ^_^ Only not. Yes, that's right, the much-dreaded....POWER RANGERS FANFICTION! *thunder crashes ominously*...Um, yeah. This is going to be a major crossover with several other fandoms, but you don't have to be familiar with them to get this story. Any inside information in each fandom will be explained, either with dialogue or as part of the narration. If there's ever anything that isn't comprehensible due to unfamiliarity with a specific fandom, PLEASE let me know so I can fix it. Also, there are OCs in this, but I'm doing my level best to keep them believable. If you have any problems with them or anything, contact me. Any constructive criticism is welcome. Anyway...here goes!

Title - Chaos, Book One : Genesis

Author - Akiko, Keeper of Sheep

Rated - M for language and violence

Genre - Romance, Adventure, Humor, Angst, Crossover

Pairings - Tommy/Kim, Jason/Trini, Eric/Wes, Jen/Wes, Adam/OC, Adam/Rocky (one-sided), Rocky/Duo, Bridge/Hermione, Sky/OC, Willow/Z, Kira/Trent, others if I think of them.

Warnings - Het and Slash pairings, quite a crossover, some language, character death.

*******

Prologue - Rising

*******

He gazed out into the cold depths of space. It was almost time. He had been gathering energy for aeons, and soon he would be free of this...prison.

Making his way through the fabric of Time and Space, he stalked the borders of his tiny Universe. Soon, soon he would be free to move through all Universes. He had nothing left to fear...except them.

Howling in fury as he thought of them, he beat at the barrier that imprisoned him. He WOULD escape. And they would pay.

With a final roar, he shattered the barrier, flitting instantly towards his target. The tiny blue planet. He could recognize the energy emenating from it, even after a millenia trapped in Nothingness.

Earth. Home of those who had captured him. Yes...

They would pay with their lives.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Are you sure about this, Jen?"

Sighing, the Pink Time Force Ranger glanced up from her console. "Yes, Alex, I'm sure. We have to warn them. The Continuum is already unstable due to the Morphin Grid. If this new energy is what I think it is, we HAVE to warn them, and fast."

Nodding, Alex leaned back against the wall, watching his ex-fiance give out orders to the rest of Time Force. "Shouldn't I go with you?"

Jen shook her head. "You need to stay here and monitor the situation. We're counting on you to keep our time safe while we're away."

"I will."

Turning to the rest of her team, Jen nodded sharply. "Let's go."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Somnes slipped easily through the timestream, then stopped. Here was a timeline with a weak connection to the Power. This would be where he made his stand. They would come to him...and he would crush them.

_It's time, Chaos Knights. Let us see who is truly the most powerful..._

Somewhere in the fabric of Time and Space, Somnes began to laugh.


	2. Meeting

A/N - W00t! Chapter one is ready to go!

Title - Chaos, Book One : Genesis

Author - Akiko, Keeper of Sheep

Rated - PG-13 for now

Genre - Romance, Adventure, Humor, Angst, Crossover

Pairings - Tommy/Kim, Jason/Trini, Eric/Wes, Jen/Wes, Adam/OC, Adam/Rocky (one-sided), Rocky/Duo, Bridge/Hermione, Sky/OC, Willow/Z, Kira/Trent, others if I think of them.

Warnings - Het and Slash pairings, quite a crossover, some language, character death.

*******

Chapter One - Meeting

*******

"Maggie, come on. Don't you want to help save the world?"

Rolling her eyes at her brother, Meggan Wilde, age 20, continued to pick through the alley, looking for anything that looked like it would be worth something. "You make it sound like you're superheroes or something. You're just glorified cops, Duo, and you know it."

Duo Maxwell, age 19, frowned and gave her a small shove. "No need to be insulting," he muttered.

"I am NOT joining the Preventers. The arrest people like me, you know."

"We wouldn't have to if you'd stop picking pockets and join us," he countered, kicking at an overflowing trash can.

They both felt a sudden chill in the air.

-_Give it to me...-_

"Um, Duo?"

"Yeah?"

"Did you just say something?"

"No," Duo said slowly, reaching for his sidearm, "stay behind me."

"Oh, how manly," Maggie sneered. "What if we're attacked from behind?"

"Oh, for the love of-"

"LOOK OUT!" a new voice shouted. They only had a heartbeat to react before the two were simultaneously knocked out of the path of what looked to be a ray gun.

You've gotta be kidding me, Maggie thought, blinking in bewilderment at the brightly-garbed man who had her pinned to the wall. He wore a tight-fitting red costume and a red helmet.

"Are you okay?"

"Um...I...I think so."

Seemingly satisfied that she was unharmed, the red-clad stranger pushed away, leaving Maggie to slide down the wall and sit unceremoniously on the trash-covered ground. Duo crawled over to her, moving away from where another oddly-dressed man (this one in blue) had pinned him down.

"You hurt, sis?"

"No...but who the hell are these freaks?"

-_No...you are not the ones I seek to battle. The others...they must give me what I seek!_-

Red snorted. "If it's a fight you're looking for, I guarantee you we can take you just as well! Now, show yourself!"

-_I reveal myself for no one. Give it to me!_-

"Excuse me," a sweet, feminine voice spoke up to the dumbstruck duo's right. They turned to see another costumed youth, this one dressed in bubblegum pink. Her helmeted head tilted to the side. "Do you know what it's talking about?"

They shook their heads mutely as another woman, this time in yellow, joined them. "We should get them back to Delta Base. Cruger will know what to do."

"First, let's arrest this weirdo," Pink exclaimed.

A shadowy figure appeared, almost invisible in the waning light. The four uniformed people moved to stand between the figure and the two utterly confused teens.

-_I have no interest in you. Stand aside._-

"Yeah, right," Yellow snorted, and all four drew long weapons from their belts. "You're going down, mister."

As they attacked, the shade vanished, only to reappear before Duo and Maggie. It seemed to reach for Duo, and for a moment, the boy was frozen in shock. Then, with a sudden cry, Maggie yanked Duo to the side, rolled to her feet, drew his handgun, and fired twice at the shadow. "Back off, freak!"

"Woah, watch it," Blue shouted, dodging the bullets as they passed through the shadow.

Howling in frustration, the shadow made for Duo again. Maggie pulled him along beside her, backtracking down the alley with the gun trained on the figure stalking them. Suddenly, four brightly-suited people jumped down to stand between the shadow and its terrified prey. Maggie noted absently that they were not the same for, but were dressed just as rediculously.

"Time's up, Somnes, we're taking you in!"

_-Hah. You? And who are you, children, to threaten me?-_

"Pink Time Force Ranger!"

"Blue Time Force Ranger!"

"Green Time Force Ranger!"

"And Yellow Time Force Ranger!"

They struck poses, and suddenly Maggie knew why she'd had the urge to laugh the whole time.

"Holy shit," Duo muttered, having the same thought, "we've been rescued by maniacs dressed up like Power Rangers."

From behind them, a shout of "Don't forget us!" caught their attention.

"One! SPD Red!"

"Two! SPD Blue!"

"Four! SPD Yellow!"

"Five! SPD Pink!"

They struck poses, as well, and Maggie gave in to her urge to giggle hysterically. Wait until she told Maila that she'd been manhandled by the Red Ranger. Duo, thinking along similar lines, snorted and grasped Maggie's arm as the two teams of lunatics attempted to engage an enemy that wasn't quite there. "Let's get out of here while we can," he murmured.

Before they could take two steps, the Pink Time Force Ranger called for a retreat. The Yellow and Blue SPD Rangers lunged forwards, grasping Maggie and Duo by the fronts of their shirts, and the world fell away.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Okay, what the HELL?"

Maggie stood up, sliding immediately into a defensive stance. Duo had rolled away, and was crouched behind a console, gun in hand.

An amused voice spoke up. "We're not going to hurt you. We're trying to help you."

The distressed teen took one look at the giant blue dog talking to her and raised an eyebrow. "Uh-huh. You'll excuse me if I don't immediately trust you."

Taking this to mean that she wouldn't be attacking him any time soon, the dog seemed to relax a bit. "I am Commander Anubis Cruger. I am in charge of Space Patrol Delta Earth Base. Our mission is to handle crime and criminals that have a negative impact on this planet. One of those criminals is the one who attacked you today."

"Not buyin' it," Duo piped up from behind the console. Maggie nodded her agreement.

"It's true," a new voice added. Maggie tensed, and she heard Duo cocking his gun as she tilted her head to get a look at the new threat. It as a woman, probably in her twenties, with luminescent green eyes and...cat ears? This was turning into a freak show.

"You guys give cosplayers a bad name."

"Pardon me," the cat-lady spoke up, and Maggie noticed with some discomfort that she had sharp fangs.

"I hate to break it to you, but there's no such thing as Power Rangers. They're a TV show from, like, the nineteen hundreds. Duo and I used to watch old clips when we were kids."

The one called Cruger sighed. "I was afraid of this. The Power Rangers are real...in OUR dimension. Somnes, the creature who attacked you, has the ability to travel between the fabric of Time and Space. He has broken through to other dimensions before, and has done so again in order to find something. I know this seems strange to you, but I'm afraid that I can offer no concrete proof at this time. You'll simply have to trust me."

Maggie and Duo exchanged glances. "Okay, say we do believe you," Duo said, sounding as though the possibility were unthinkable, "what does this have to do with us? Why was this Somnes after us, and why were we brought here?"

"You were brought here because Somnes is after you. As to why he wanted you...I can't say. My Rangers tell me that he seemed to want something you had. Do either of you know what that might be?"

They shook their heads, not quite believing it, but not seeing much choice but to go along with it.

"Hmm. Then I must insist that you remain here until we can figure out what it is Somnes wants with you."

Duo looked at Maggie, and for a long moment, no one spoke. Finally, Maggie relaxed her stance.

"Well," Duo quipped, "if we have to hide out, might as well be among crazed Power Rangers cosplayers."

Maggie grinned back, but said nothing.


	3. Starting

A/N - Wow, I'm on a roll! I know, I know, it's moving slowly, and there's not a lot of humor. I promise that'll change! Just bear with me. Anyway, if anyone has a guess as to who will be what ranger, let me know! A cookie goes to the closest guess! Enjoy!

Title - Chaos, Book One : Genesis

Author - Akiko, Keeper of Sheep

Rated - M for language and violence

Genre - Romance, Adventure, Humor, Angst, Crossover

Pairings - Tommy/Kim, Jason/Trini, Eric/Wes, Jen/Wes, Adam/OC, Adam/Rocky (one-sided), Rocky/Duo, Bridge/Hermione, Sky/OC, Willow/Z, Kira/Trent, others if I think of them.

Warnings - Het and Slash pairings, quite a crossover, some language, character death.

*******

Chapter Two - Starting

*******

"You want us to what?"

Cruger sighed internally, wishing he'd gotten someone else to do this. "I want you two to join SPD."

Duo's eyebrows shot up. "Yeah, that's what I thought you said."

Examining her nails with great disinterest, Maggie shook her head slowly. "Lunatics, all of them."

"If you would please assist B-Squad for now. At least until we know what Somnes is up to."

Duo shrugged, and he and Maggie spoke with their eyes for a moment. Then, rolling her eyes, Maggie nodded. "Yeah, sure. Why not? I'll go ahead and prance around in spandex for a while."

"I think it's lycra, actually," a female voice spoke up. Turning to meet the newcomer's eyes, Maggie and Duo found themselves looking at a young, no-nonsense woman in a grey and yellow uniform. She grinned at them, then jerked her elbow up and to the side in some kind of salute. Maggie had to bite her lip to keep from grinning when Duo muttered, "Everybody needs a little elbow room." in her ear. Cruger cleared his throat.

"Cadet Delgado. Thank you for coming. I have an announcement to make."

Cadet Delgado nodded, looking around. "Where's everyone else?"

"Cadets Tate and Carson are on patrol. Cadet Drew is visiting Jack."

The young woman smirked. "Discussing their birthday no doubt. So, what's up?"

"I would like you to give your morpher to Miss Wilde."

There was a moment of disbelieving silence before both girls began protesting loudly. With a sharp growl, Cruger cut them both off. "I'm promoting you to SPD Green Ranger, Cadet Delgado. Is that satisfactory?"

Delgado blinked a few times. "I...well...yeah, I guess. But, sir, why-"

"You have shown remarkable improvement in your time here. It's time for you to move forward in your career as an SPD Ranger."

"Wow. Thanks."

"Now," Cruger said, turning his eyes to Maggie, who was still looking abit uncomfortable, "You will take Z's place as SPD Yellow Ranger. Is that acceptable?"

Blinking a few times, Maggie nodded hesitantly. "I guess. If I've gotta do this, might as well do it in yellow." Carefully taking the proffered morpher, Maggie gasped at the sudden flow of Power. "Wow. That's different."

"Maggie? You okay?"

"Yeah, I just..." She looked up at Cruger, looking him straight in the eye. "This is for real, isn't it? This really is a morpher."

Cruger nodded.

"Wow. Just...wow."

"Mr. Maxwell," Cruger said, turning to Duo. "There are no current openings on B-Squad. I'll give you a choice. You can join C-Squad as a trainee, and work your way up, or you can use a prototype morpher Kat's been working on."

Duo shifted. "Well, I'm always up for trying new things." He didn't add that he'd rather stay close to Maggie and keep an eye on her.

"Very well." Nodding to a tech standing nearby, Cruger added, "this is the first Omega Morpher. It's never been tested, so we're unsure of how well it will work. If you're willing, later in the day we will have a training match to ensure that it is effective in battle."

Taking it, Duo nearly gasped as he felt the same Power that Maggie had.

"Cool."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Maggie sighed as she entered the rec room. It wasn't bad enough that she was being recruited against her will, she had to 'bond' with her teammates. Yeah, like that was happening.

Squaring her shoulders, she scanned the space for Duo. If there was anyone who could help her get through this, it would be her best friend. Her eyebrow rose in confusion and amusement when she spotted him standing upside-down by the window, next to another young man. The two were chatting happily - about nonsense, if the look on their female companion's face was anything to go by - not in the least bothered by the fact that people were giving them a wide berth. Maggie made her way over, muttering about psychotic best friends and cursing the chaos that infected every aspect of her life.

"Duo, what are you doing?"

"Thinking."

Glancing at the young man who had answered, she quirked her eyebrow again. "Thinking. Upside-down."

Duo nodded as best he could while standing on his hands. " Well, yeah. That way all the ideas flow into your head better."

Maggie opened her mouth to relpy, thought better of it, and shook her head resignedly. "Okay then. Have fun."

As she made to walk away, the young man flipped back over. Maggie noted belatedly that he wore a blue uniform shirt. Her suspicions were confirmed when the young man held out a gloved hand and stated in a cheerful voice, "Hi! I'm Bridge Carson, the Blue Ranger. I heard you were taking Z's place, 'cause she's taking my place, I mean, she would be taking my place if I was in the place she's taking still. But I'm not. I was green, you see, but when Jack left Sky took his place, and I took Sky's place, but no one was taking my place. I don't know why. Anyway, now Z's finally taking my place, and I guess you would be taking Syd's place," here he gestured to a young blond woman who waved and smiled, "but Syd wouldn't want to take Z's place 'cause she hates yellow, but I guess you like yellow, 'cause now you've taken Z's place. So...congratulations!"

Feeling a little like she'd been run over by a steamroller, Maggie extracted her hand from the Blue Ranger's grasp and smiled. "Thanks. Nice to meet you. I'm Maggie."

Bridge smiled, more than a little relieved. He'd had a feeling he'd startled her, and he was really glad she seemed to like him. She wasn't annoyed, either.

"Hi," Syd piped up. "I'm Sydney Drew, but you can call me Syd. I'm the Pink Ranger."

"Pleased to meet you, Syd."

"Duo's been telling us that you guys are from an alternate dimension," Bridge interjected. "What's that like?"

"Like here, only less aliens and superheroes."

"Oh."

Duo grinned, getting to his feet as gracefully as Bridge had. "Me, Bridge and Syd are gonna hit the training room. They want to teach me to play lightball. Want to join us?"

"Maybe later," Maggie said, glancing around. "I think I want to get used to this place. And it's 'Bridge, Syd and I,' genius."

Laughing, the braided boy just waved her off and started out of the room. Bridge and Syd followed after extracting promises from Maggie to meet them for lunch. As they left, Maggie spied an open spot on the couch across from a TV. Plopping down onto the sofa, Maggie glanced at the young man next to her. Her breath caught in her throat.

Pretty, she thought.

For he was, indeed, quite pretty. Her eyes traveled over his brown-blond hair, his high cheekbones, and his full, pouty lips. His shirt stretched tight over well-defined shoulders, and the fingers clutching his book were long and-

"Can I help you?"

Shaking herself, Maggie looked up to discover a pair of intense blue eyes locked on her. For a long moment, she found herself unable to think of anything to say for what was probably the first time in her life. The young man was scowling at her, his (lovely, in her opinion) lips pressed together in irritation.

"I...um...I was just..."

His expression cleared as though he'd just realized something. "Sorry," he stated, not sounding sorry in the least, "I forgot that we hadn't been introduced. I'm Sky Tate, B-Squad Red Ranger."

Oh.

OH.

Blushing madly, Maggie recalled vividly the way he'd shoved her against a wall, blocking the attack meant for her. He had been a warm, steady presence, the feel of his body-

"And you are," came the impatient voice of Sky Tate from somewhere outside her memories. Jerking back to the present, Maggie blushed harder,.

"Oh...Maggie. Maggie Wilde." She stuck out her hand. "I'm the new B-Squad Yellow Ranger."

Sky's scowl was back. He ignored her hand, grunted to himself, and turned back to his book.

_Well_...if _that's_ how it was going to be...

Maggie huffed to herself, turning her eyes to the television and doing her best to ignore the surly, arrogant, gorgeous...She sighed to herself. This couldn't be over fast enough.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Sky scowled at the pages of his Handbook. The girl sitting next to him was petite and pretty, but he could tell she had an attitude. It was in the way she spoke, the way she sat, the way she stared at him with those big, green eyes like she wanted to devour him...

Okay, getting off track.

In any case, this probably wouldn't be as bad as when Jack and Z joined the team. At least these two weren't criminals. And they both seemed to have fairly good reflexes. The way the girl had yanked her companion out of harms way, moving fluidly and gracefully, all smooth lines and furious protectiveness...

Damn it.

Okay, reading. That he could do.

Section 7, Rule 378-E: Fraternization with a fellow member of a squad is strictly forbidden. All cadets suspected of fraternization will be demoted pending a hearing. Fraternization includes romantic and physical relations, or intent to engage in romantic or physical relations...

...So, reading was out.

Before Sky could think any further, the alert sounded. Maggie jumped a bit, blushing, before rising and following him out of the Rec. Room.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Cruger hid a smile when Maggie and Duo rolled their eyes as the rest of their squad saluted. He knew it would take time for them to adjust, and for now he was willing to allow them a bit of freedom. Still, if the data they'd gotten from Alex of Time Force was correct, they'd need to step up.

"Rangers. The sensors Time Force and Kat set up have detected Somnes moving into a new dimension. We'll attach you to his signature and transport you there immediately. My guess is, whatever he's after will be with another person. You are to go and bring them back here. Do not attempt to bring Somnes in. We're not capable enough at this time," he added, cutting Sky off before he could protest, "Right now, just focus on protecting his targets."

"Yes, sir," they chorused. This time, Duo and Maggie both saluted. Cruger noted that while Duo stood straight and pulled off a sharp salute, Maggie stood with her arms crossed in a blatantly defiant manner, and her salute was more mocking than anything.

This was going to take some work.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Okay, everybody, fan out and search the area."

Maggie snorted. "That's an original plan."

Gritting his teeth, Sky turned his glare on her. "It's a plan that works, Cadet Wilde. Now I suggest you do as I ordered and stop making trouble."

Maggie glowered back. "How about remembering that I'm new at this? I never wanted to be a cop. I hate cops. And your high-and-mighty attitude isn't helping at all. Try a little respect. Sir."

Growling low in his throat, Sky took a menacing step forwards. To her credit, Maggie didn't flinch, though she leaned back a little. "Respect has to be earned, Cadet. And maybe you should remember that SPD is doing you a favor. So why don't you repay that by scanning the area like I told you to."

With a deadly look worthy of any Yellow Ranger, she executed a perfect salute and marched off to explore the warehouse to the east.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Xander blinked, looking over his best friend's shoulder at something.

"Um, Wills, you didn't summon some kind of shadowy demon thing, did you?"

"Huh?" The young witch looked over her shoulder to see a shadow-figure coming towards them. "Um...no. I mean, I-I don't think so. Uh...maybe?"

-_Give me what I seek. Give me your Power!-_

"Um...no?"

-_Foolish Knights! Do not test my temper! Give the Chaos Power to me!_-

"Okay," a voice rang out, "I don't know what this 'Chaos Power' is, or why you want it, but it wouldn't hurt to say please."

Willow and Xander turned to face the new arrival. A young woman with shoulder-length brown hair and green eyes stood, arms crossed, focused completely on the entity before them. The figure seemed to writhe for a moment.

-_You! You stink of Chaos. Give me the Power!-_

Shaking her head, the woman drew her weapon and aimed. "I don't think so, Casper."

Before she could fire, the wraith-like thing surged towards her. Lunging to the side, she rolled and leapt up, holstering her weapon. "Fine, you wanna play rough? We'll play rough." Reaching to her hip, she pulled out what looked like a little box. Holding it up, she pressed a button on top. There was a flash of yellow light, and suddenly the Yellow Ranger was standing in her place.

Xander stumbled a little and sat down hard. "It's a Power Ranger. A real one!"

The figure paused, as though it were confused. _-You do not use your true Power. Do you not know what you are?-_

"I know exactly what I am, you freak." She paused, as though reluctant to say what came next. Tilting her head towards the two startled teens, she sighed. "Promise you won't laugh?" At their nod, she heaved another sigh and faced the thing again. "Four! SPD Yellow," she shouted, striking a pose.

There was a long silence.

"Oh, shut up, I have to say that!"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Okay, anyone know where Maggie went?"

Sky huffed under his breath. "She went east, I know that. Near the college, I think."

"Well," Bridge urged. "Let's...uh-oh."

Syd frowned. "What? What's wrong?"

"Somnes. He's there. And so's Maggie."

Duo was running before Bridge finished speaking, morphing as he went.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Well, this isn't going so well, Maggie thought as she landed hard on her back.

"Oh, ow. That's gonna leave a mark."

"Maggie!"

Glancing up in relief, Maggie heaved herself to her feet and brushed herself off with supreme dignity. "Took you guys long enough. He messed up my new outfit."

Rolling his eyes behind his helmet, Sky pushed to the front. "I'll keep him busy. You guys get them out of here."

About to protest, Maggie was interrupted by a hand on her shoulder. Bridge shook his head. "Let's get them back to base."

Sighing, Maggie took off to the right with Duo, while Bridge and Z took the left and Syd went up and over. Darting around Somnes, they all grabbed one arm. Bridge hit the communications button on his morpher. "Okay, Commander! Bring us in!"

Silence.

"Commander?"

Z and Syd both tried their own radios before turning to the two teens.

"We need you to stay back, okay? We'll get you out of here, but you have to stay out of the way," Z explained. They nodded back.

Syd yelped as Sky was tossed into her. They tumbled to the pavement.

Duo snorted. "Graceful." Nodding to Maggie, he charged Somnes. Just before he reached the shade, he ducked and tumbled to the side, rolling to his feet and launching a roundhouse kick at Somnes' back. His foot passed through the being, but Duo had been expecting that. Lunging to the side to avoid a strike aimed at his head, he gestured for Maggie to back off.

"We've got to think of something else. Physical attacks just aren't working," Sky announced. Maggie shook her head.

"Reeeaaaally. What makes you think that, Fearless Leader?"

Bridge stepped between them. "Can we argue later? We've got a problem."

"Thanks for stating the obvious."

The Blue Ranger recoiled a bit until he realized that Maggie's ire was directed solely at their leader. Filing that bit of information away for later use, he aimed his Deltamax Striker at the advancing shade.

"Okay, fall back and try to contact Delta Base again!"

-_I tire of this. Give me the Chaos Power, pitiful Knights!-_

Duo snorted. "What's the magic word?"

"SEVERO!"

A rush of Power bore down on Somnes, and a bright flash of green seemed to tear Somnes apart. A horrible shriek filled the air, and in a swirl of black smoke, Somnes disappeared.

One by one, the Rangers turned to stare at Willow, who was gazing at her outstretched hand in wonder.

"Geez, Will, warn a guy next time!" Xander stood and reached out, putting an arm around Willow's shoulders. "That was great, by the way."

"Thanks."

A sudden noise made them both whirl. Six young people stood before them, the man in blue grinning sheepishly. "That's me," he explained, taking out his morpher. "Go ahead, Commander."

"There was interference earlier. I trust you're all unharmed?"

"Ah, relatively. I mean, some bumps and all, but I'm assuming that by 'unharmed' you mean 'no lasting damage', which there isn't any of, so-"

"Carson!"

"Sorry, sir. Preparing for teleportation."

They all crowded together, Z and Syd taking hold of Willow and Xander. In a flash, they were gone.


	4. Changing

A/N – Nooo! My original draft of Chapter Three is inaccessible. Now I have to rewrite iiiiit! *sob* Well, hope you enjoy it, anyway.

Title - Chaos, Book One : Genesis

Author - Akiko, Keeper of Sheep

Rated - PG-13 for now

Genre - Romance, Adventure, Humor, Angst, Crossover

Pairings - Tommy/Kim, Jason/Trini, Eric/Wes, Jen/Wes, Adam/OC, Adam/Rocky (one-sided), Rocky/Duo, Bridge/Hermione, Sky/OC, Willow/Z, Kira/Trent, others if I think of them.

Warnings - Het and Slash pairings, quite a crossover, some language, character death.

*******

Chapter Three - Changing

*******

Maggie felt panic flood her as someone grabbed her shoulder and jerked her around. Twenty years of instincts kicked in, and she lashed out at her attacker. The dull thud of her elbow connecting with flesh soothed her fear. Then reason kicked in, and she realized that the number of people at Delta Base who would grab her like that was low.

Wincing, she glanced up at the face of her squad leader. The electric blue eyes were startled and angry, and a large red mark was beginning to show along his right cheekbone. It would probably turn into a spectacular bruise, she mused.

"Sorry," she muttered, "Reflex."

Releasing her shoulder, Sky took a step back and crossed his arms. "I shouldn't have grabbed you without warning, but I wanted to talk to you about your conduct."

"Oh, for crying out loud," she exclaimed with a huff, "I was scanning the area like you told me to. I saw Somnes, and I made the decision to hold him off until you arrived."

"What if we hadn't arrived in time?"

"Then I guess I'd be dead."

Sky's scowl deepened. "Is that supposed to be funny? Because it isn't. We've put our lives on the line to keep you alive, Cadet."

"I didn't ask you to," she snarled, turning with the intention of walking away. Sky grabbed her again, and this time he flung her up against the wall. The impact stunned her, but she was more startled by the fact that he'd manhandled her at all.

Not thinking of being manhandled by Sky Tate, oh, no...

"What the hell, Tate? Have you lost it, or do you get off on roughing girls up?"

Slamming one hand into the wall next to her head, Sky pinned her in place with a laser glare. "Let me explain something to you, Cadet Wilde. Whether you like it or not, you've accepted the responsibility of being a Ranger. Our entire purpose is to protect others from harm. My life is dedicated to that purpose, and if your actions cause any of the civilians under my care or any of the Rangers under my command to be injured or killed, it will go very hard for you. I promise you that. Now," he finished with a growl that did funny things to Maggie's insides, "shape the fuck up or get the fuck out."

He pushed away from her and was down the corridor and around the corner before she could kick-start her brain into forming a crushing reply.

As soon as he knew he was out of sight, Sky stopped and leaned back against the wall. He hadn't meant to lose his temper like that. Just grabbing her at all was a serious breach of protocol, but actually throwing her around? He was pretty sure he could be suspended from service if she reported him for assault. And she was his subordinate. He was supposed to teach and guide her patiently, not take leave of his senses and batter her.

Well, he hadn't actually beaten her or anything. In fact, she was the one who hit him. He could report her. Not that he would, because he knew he shouldn't have grabbed her. Not to mention that would involve telling his commander that he'd been hit in the face by a girl. And, seriously, what kind of Red Ranger went around whining about getting hit by a girl? Even so, it had been a pretty good move - quick and accurate. Sky prodded at the tender area tentatively. Oh, yeah, that was gonna leave a mark. A little harder and she might have broken something. Reluctantly, Sky had to admit that for all her unprofessionalism, she was a good fighter.

Not that he'd ever tell her that.

As the B Squad leader pushed off the wall to continue to his quarters, his comm chirped.

Back to work.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Cruger took one look at Sky's face and sighed. "Sparring, Cadet Tate?"

"Yes, sir," was the terse reply. Cruger noted the way Maggie tensed up and mentally shook his head.

He was going to need a whole bottle of aspirin before this was over.

"There's a robbery taking place downtown. I'd like it resolved quickly and cleanly, please."

"Yes, sir," five voices intoned. As the Rangers moved to leave, Cruger motioned to Maggie.

"Cadet Wilde, I'd like to speak to you for a moment."

Maggie ignored Sky's smug look. Acknowlegding it would only lead to her hitting him. Again. And she didn't want to do that. Oh, no. Not where there were witnesses, anyway...

"Yes, sir?"

"Cadet, I'm concerned about your conduct, both on base and on the field."

Maggie pressed her lips together, saying nothing, so Cruger continued.

"I understand that you are unused to operating on a team, but you must do your absolute best to learn. This is a dangerous job, and professionalism and teamwork are essential to your survival, that of your teammates, and that of the citizens of this planet. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir," she replied, her tone and expression revealing nothing.

"Very well." Nodding brusquely, Cruger dismissed her. As she turned on her heel and stalked off after her new teammates, the Sirian sighed again.

Perhaps a wholesale of aspirin was called for.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Duo grimaced as he was showered in barbeque-flavored potato chips. "I hope dry-cleaning is part of the deal, man."

Z grinned at her new teammate. Sky might be upset at their intrusion, but he didn't much like any kind of change. Syd was glad for another girl on the team, and Bridge was thrilled to find that Duo's mind (while a bit slower) worked much like his. Z found herself liking both of them. Duo was open, optimistic, and laid-back. He reminded her quite a lot of Jack, actually. Maggie was more sarcastic and closed-off, but she was smart and she took no shit, something Z couldn't help but respect.

The new Yellow Ranger was currently hunkered down behind the slush machine near the entrance of the convenience store. Syd was crouched next to her, cradling her right arm close to her torso. The perp - which looked a good deal like a mix between a moose, a flamingo, and Marilyn Manson - had gotten a good hit in when they'd arrived. Maggie had managed to keep Syd from sailing into the pallet of wine coolers, earning herself a terse nod from Sky. The newly-Green Ranger had to bite back a grin when Maggie gestured back rudely, privately wondering how long it would be before the two of them snapped and either killed each other or started making out in the janitor's closet.

Speaking of her squad leader, Z couldn't spot Sky or Bridge, but she knew they were safe by the candy display, because she could hear a faint exclaimation of "Oooh, Sky, they have Sour Jacks!"

"Come on, coppers! You can't hide forever! You gonna come out, or do I have to smoke you out?"

This brilliant statement was followed by a series of shotgun blasts that took out several more bags of chips, a display of playing cards with pictures of scantily-clad alien girls, and the Plexiglass pane covering the front of the Blue Raspberry slush mixer. As Z shook a layer of sour cream and onion powder from her uniform, she heard Syd lamenting loudly about the sticky slush turning her suit purple.

"There's a reason there's never been a Purple Ranger," she wailed.

"Uh-oh," Maggie's voice rang out, thick with sarcasm and irritation, "you've gone and ruined her outfit. You're in deep shit now, you dillhole."

"Am I the only one who had a mental image of her getting all big and pink, like Incredible Hulk Barbie," Duo snickered.

"Does she come with a pink convertable?"

"No, but her shirt tears off, and if you push the button, she says 'Hulk shop!'"

Syd huffed. "I am so sick of being compared to Barbie!"

"Maybe you should rethink the color-scheme of your wardrobe, then."

"Will you all shut up and focus," Sky snarled, trying to work out a strategy that wouldn't end with someone getting shot. He wasn't sure how the Power Suits would hold up to solid projectile weapons fire, but he suspected now wasn't the time to experiment. Somewhere in the middle of flanking maneuvers and wondering where the robber had gotten a highly illegal weapon, he heard the piercing wail of a small child.

Bridge uttered a word Sky had never heard him use before.

Six helmeted and one antlered head whipped towards the sound. The alien hefted his gun and stalked towards the soda aisle.

Without hesitation, Duo stood, vaulted over the aisle, and tackled the thing in one smooth motion.

"Maxwell!"

Duo had caught the perp by surprise, and it lost its grip on the gun. Duo had been expecting that. What he hadn't been expecting was the fact that whatever species this thing was, it had claws. He discovered them rather abruptly as the bulkier alien rolled and pinned him to the floor. Three-inch, razor sharp talons sank into Duo's stomach, tearing and gouging. He bit off a scream, but the little girl behind him didn't. She howled louder as Duo struggled to dislodge the claws from his flesh. Blood streamed from his wounds, matting the fur and feathers of the perp's arms, making it impossible for Duo to get a good grip.

Maggie got to them first, and when she saw what the creature was doing to Duo, she froze. Terror and fury flooded her veins, and the world around her vanished in a haze of...yellow?

Sky barked out orders, sending Bridge to get the child to safety as he scrambled towards his imperiled teammate. Duo could not die, not on his watch, not when he was responsible, not when Duo was counting on him. But before he could even begin to formulate a plan, a flash of electric yellow blinded him, even through the tinted visor.

"Get the hell off my brother!"

Sky blinked back the stars in his vision, trying to focus. A yellow blur had pried the alien off his victim and hurled it through the door. The tinkling of the bell in the doorway provided an incongruous accent to the entire situation.

Maggie stood, feet apart and fists clenched, clad in bright yellow. But the uniform wasn't SPD-regulation. It wasn't even close.

Later, looking through files on the Ranger teams, Sky would compare it to the Ninjetti uniforms, but even then there were dissimilarities. The tunic was sleeveless, and the leggings only reached to mid-thigh. She wore white, knee-high boots, and instead of a helmet, there was the hooded mask that brought the Ninja Rangers to mind. White gloves came up to her elbows, and around her right arm was a yellow band with a kanji printed on it in black. After a bit of research, Sky translated is as Chaos.

"The hell..." Z murmured.

"Your guess is as good as mine," was all Sky could think to say.

In a sudden motion that made everyone jump, Maggie slammed through the door. "Teach you to harm my brother," she hissed, making a beeline for the dazed alien.

Some distance away, Cruger watched the altercation intently, as bewildered as his Rangers. And in the infirmary, two very confused teens stared as red and green sparks crawled over their skin. Xander cleared his throat nervously. "Uh, Will? Please, please tell me you're doing that."

Mutely, Willow shook her head.

"Oh, man..."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Duo tried to breathe deeply. His body didn't seem to want to cooperate. It didn't want to do much of anything except bleed. Duo was a bit put out by this. It was his body, after all, it should obey him. If he were Heero, he mused, he'd be on his feet beating the stuffing out of that guy. And probably losing gallons of blood in the process.

_Duo Maxwell...you are dying._

And now he was hearing a voice, one which wasn't really telling Duo anything he didn't already know. He could hear Syd muttering nearby, hear Bridge going over the extent of his injuries out loud. He could feel the cold numbness seeping in as the warm blood seeped out.

_You must not die now, Duo Maxwell. Your soul-sister needs you._

Maggie. He'd really let her down. First he cut himself off from her when she was adopted. Then he dragged her back into a life of crime. Then he abandoned her to play war. And now she was off fighting his battle, probably getting herself killed.

_You must embrace your Power, Duo Maxwell. Embrace the Power, and it will heal you._

Duo vaguely thought that the Power sounded a lot like what Father Maxwell described Jesus to be.

_You will be whole._

Fine, Duo thought hazily. If this Power would help him protect his only family, he'd embrace the hell out of it.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Maggie didn't know what was going on. She didn't know what she was doing. She didn't know what the voice in her head meant. All she knew was that the criminal in front of her had hurt her best friend, her brother. And she was going to kill it.

Slowly.

"Cadet Wilde! Fall back!"

She ignored her team leader, instead focusing on the alien before her. It had amused and annoyed her before. It was going to wish it had continued to do so.

As she started forward, a red-clad arm reached out, wound around her waist, and yanked her to the side just as several six-inch barbs whizzed past.

"When I give you an order, you follow it, Cadet," Sky snarled. Maggie turned her head slowly to gaze at him impassively, and Sky was taken aback at the cold, flat look in her eyes, the only part of her face he could see.

"Let me explain something to you, Red," she started. "I don't care about your purpose. I don't care about your orders, or your team, or this city. I care about one thing, and one thing only - my brother. I will not let him come to any more harm. I will destroy anyone who seeks to inflict pain upon him. His enemies are my enemies. And if you get in my way again, you become my enemy, as well. Now release me."

Sky did, angry and confused, but reluctant to argue with the raw emotion in her voice. As he did, a cheerful voice piped up behind them.

"Nice to know you're so concerned, Sis, but in case you didn't notice, I'm okay. And, FYI, the perp's getting away."

Maggie and Sky turned to gaze at Duo. He was dressed in white, the style similar to Maggie's uniform, only his leggings were looser, longer, and were tucked into ankle-high black boots. His gloves were black, as well, as was his armband, which bore the same kanji as Maggie's, in white.

Maggie grinned under her mask. "Loving the new look, Duo."

"Back atcha. What say we break the new duds in by kicking a little ass?"

"Oh, darn," Maggie snickered, turning to face the alien, who was trying to crab-walk backwards to get away. "I hate that idea."

As she focused, words filled her mind. Words of Power. She lifted her right hand to point her index and middle fingers at the alien. Beside her, Duo held out both hands, palms facing outward. A white glow surrounded his hands, growing more and more intense.

"Chaotic Lightning!"

"Light of Judgement!"

Yellow lightning blended with a blinding beam of white light, enveloping and obliterating the alien in an instant.

There was a long moment of silence. Then Duo rubbed the back of his neck. "Uh, we were supposed to bring him in alive, weren't we?"


End file.
